I love the cycles of the academic calendar, but I’ll admit that the last few weeks of everything-is-double-time summer school threw me for a loop last week—hence the unexpected week off from blogging. Perhaps that is why this week I’m drawn to ideas for artistic fun.

I love the photography of Pierre Javelle and Akiko Ida (mimimiam). I was first introduced to the magic worlds they create though an NPR story last year. Javelle and Ida photograph food, but through their lenses, food items become landscapes to be explored by miniature figures. Chili peppers must be extinguished by tiny firefighters. Miniscule workmen inflate grapes to become full-fledged raisins and tiny astronauts explore the craps of cauliflower. Watch and wonder.

Of course, when I looked at these gloriously creative compositions, I wanted to try. What a great way to practice looking at ordinary things from a new point of few. At first I was discouraged because I don’t have miniature figures around the house, but I do have Lego figures. In just a few minutes I was able to photograph my Lego people climbing a mango mountain or (seemingly) conquering an enormous cat. If I can manage two basic photos in ten minutes, imagine what you—your children and/or your students—could do in a hour. Imagine the flexible thinking. And imagine the fun. So bring out the smart photos, the cameras and the imagination. What new worlds can you find?